U.S. Navy: China did not ‘expel’ USS John S. McCain from South China Sea

Dec. 23 (UPI) — Promises by China that that it “expelled” the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain from disputed South China Seawaters are untrue, the U.S. Navy mentioned.

“On Dec. 22, USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) asserted navigational legal rights and freedoms in the Spratly Islands, steady with global regulation,” a statement Tuesday by the Navy’s 7th Fleet started.

“This liberty of navigation procedure … upheld the legal rights, freedoms, and lawful utilizes of the sea identified in international law by demanding limitations on innocent passage imposed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan.

“All interactions with overseas army forces have been consistent with worldwide norms and did not impact the operation.”

The Chinese statement came immediately after the ship passed in close proximity to the archipelago of modest islands, reefs and atolls in the South China Sea, an region claimed by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. China has put in an airstrip and a number of properties on the internet site.

“The Chinese People’s Liberation Military (PLA) on Tuesday expelled U.S. destroyer USS John S. McCain following it trespassed into China’s territorial waters off Nansha Islands in the South China Sea, said Senior Col. Tian Junli, a spokesperson for the PLA Southern Theater Command,” a statement by the point out-owned China World-wide Tv Network explained Tuesday.

The PLA statement added that ships and plane drove the U.S. ship from the place.

The U.S. Navy statement Tuesday pointed out that “U.S. forces work in the South China Sea on a every day basis, as they have for more than a century.”